The Ultralight Hummingbird Hammock (7oz)

The Hummingbird single person hammock weighs just 7oz, is rated to hold 275 pounds, and is made in USA by an FAA certified parachute rigger.

I’ve been carrying the Hummingbird hammock with me on weekend hikes and day hikes for several weeks now and have to say that for someone who wasn’t really into relaxing in a hammock I’ve been totally converted. The Hummingbird hammock was recently successfully funded via Kickstarter and is in the process of going into full production – good news for those of you that missed the Kickstarter project or who didn’t originally back it.

Truly Pocketsized

The main reason why I’ve never bothered to take a more serious look at a casual hammock for hiking was because I didn’t want to carry the extra weight or bulk for a hammock that wasn’t also my shelter. At a mere 7oz and roughly the size of a coffee cup packed inside it’s integral carry pouch, the Hummingbird lives up to its name – it’s tiny when packed, but not small in use. The dimensions of the single person version that I am using here are as follows: 8’6″ (102″) long and 4’2″ (50″) wide at its widest point. It is able to accomplish this by the incredibly light but strong calendared ripstop nylon it is constructed from.

Soft Carabiners

I’m no expert when it comes to hammocks or rigging them. I know my knots extremely well, but I have to say that I wasn’t entirely sure how to rig the Hummingbird hammock and not because it’s complicated – far from it. The inventor/designer of the Hummingbird hammock introduced me to a new term “soft carabiner” and explained how to use the short lengths of cord that are already attached to each end of the hammock to form the soft carabiners.

Soft carabiners are similar to the systems used to hold a skydiver to the lines on a parachute, which makes sense given that the designer is a parachute rigger. Soft carabiners are impossible to cross load and are much stronger per ounce than a traditional carabiner. These are then used to attach to whatever webbing or cord you prefer to use for hanging your hammock.

In keeping with the whole ultralight theme I used two five foot lengths of Technora cord from Gearward that is rated to 600lbs. Each length weighed just 0.16oz. When you combine the Hummingbird hammock with the two lengths of Technora cord used to attach it to the trees it adds up to 7.32oz for an entire hammock system. That’s pretty amazing to me.

Available for Pre-Order

The Hummingbird single person hammock Kickstarter campaign is over, but because of the continued interest in this amazing lightweight hammock the designer set up a webpage where you can place a pre-order. It is currently only being offered in the bright green color shown in my photos, but other colors such as orange and light blue will be available at a future date.

The regular price for the Hummingbird hammock is $58.00, but if you enter the special coupon code “BRIANGREEN” at checkout you will receive 10% off your order bringing the price down to $53.0. For that you get a compact, ultralight hammock designed and made in Colorado Springs by an FAA certified parachute rigger using the strongest and best quality materials used by the skydiving industry.

Disclosure: The author of Brian’s Backpacking Blog was provided with complimentary sample of this product for the purpose of evaluation, testing, and feedback. He was under no obligation to publish a review. His thoughts are his own.

Ha, I never even thought to measure it. Hold and I’ll dig it out and do that. Sloppy review…

http://www.briangreen.net Brian Green

Joe, the dimensions of the single person version that I have are as follows: 8’6″ (102″) long and 4’2″ (50″) wide. Hope that helps.

jdrower

It would be nice if one could have a ‘hygiene’ hole cut in the middle of the hammock that didn’t compromise the strength or reclining function but permitted those of us no longer as flexible as in yester-year and who would like to reduce the chance of embarassing consequences while answering the call of nature during an al fresco experience. PS I bought one and made that suggestion smiling as I enjoyed the discount. Cheers

http://www.briangreen.net Brian Green

It would be hilarious (or awesome in your case) if they actually make that as an option.

Knotty

Soft carabiners come out of the sailboat racing world. They too are obsessed with lightweight. Hammockers have been using them for a number of years now.

The Hummingbird looks like another nice entry into the hammock market. It’s small, so some (like me) are likely to find it uncomfortable while others will love it.

An important consideration is that a hammock should never be attached to a tree with rope in order to prevent injury to the tree. Always use some type of webbing strap at the tree.

http://www.briangreen.net Brian Green

I didn’t know that about the soft carabiners, thanks for sharing. I agree on the use of webbing. I used a very thin but strong cord to hang the hammock and it was less than ideal and very tree unfriendly. Webbing would not only be much better for the trees, it would be easier to use.

I’m waiting and expecting the Hummingbird Hammock to get snapped up by a larger company or big outdoor retailer. We’ll watch and see.

Knotty

Since biners are pretty much specific to the climbing world, sailors call them soft shackles as they replace traditional stainless steel shackles in rigging.

Snctool

Brian, I take it there is no rain fly with the hammock? It would be nice to just hang out around d the camp with such a lightweight piece of gear. Thanks for the review.

http://www.briangreen.net Brian Green

Correct, it’s just what I would consider to be a casual hammock for kicking back in and lounging. That said, there is nothing stopping anyone from pitching this under a tarp and making it into a sleeping hammock – although there wouldn’t be any no-see-um netting to keep the buggies out :)

Steve Sherron

While kayaking last week I saw a guy lounging on the bank in a hammock and I made a mental note that I needed to get just a casual hammock, not for camping purposes per se, but just to take a nap in possibly and relax. I found your article and I just placed an order using your discount code. Thanks.

http://www.lightweighrob.com Rob McKay

What do you recommend 4 a tarp – Zpacks?

MGM

The link to buy this is no longer working. Any idea where I can buy this? Thanks!

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About Brian

Brian is a Charlotte based backpacker, gear junkie, runner, and CrossFit(er). Originally from Southampton, England, Brian has lived in the US for over 15 years, finally settling in North Carolina. He spends as much time backpacking as his busy work schedule and family life will allow.